Hi! I’m Dr. Dani Cimino, BetterVet Chief Veterinary Officer, and mom to Frankie, my super brilliant 6.5-year-old Border Collie, and Toby, my incredibly loveable, roughly 8-year-old mini Australian Shepard mix.

Like so many of us over these past 2 pandemic years, Frankie and Toby have enjoyed an increase in food as a distraction, time filler, love, and a decrease in physical activity.

The result? Both of my pups are in need of shedding a few pounds.

As their number one fan and advocate, it’s all up to me to help them out.

So, I sat down with Frankie and Toby. I let them know that things were going to change a little bit over the next few months until we have their weight back down to the goal.

I also let them know we were going to be sharing their weight loss journey with our friends at Top Dog Tips with some first-hand account journal entries.

We’ll also be talking with you from the kitchen of our weight loss journey sponsor Goodness Gracious at the end. I am really excited to share this story with you.

Frankie is currently weighing in at 45lbs, with a goal weight of 38 lb. Goal weight for Toby is 23 lb., down from his current 28lbs. To achieve this, Frankie’s caloric requirements are about 712 kcal/day and Toby’s are 488 kcal/day.

Their weight loss nutrition will be provided by Goodness Gracious food primarily. No more than 10% of this nutrition plan will be treats or supplements, as food is not always love.  We will also increase their daily activity.

Here is their perspective.... 

Monday, February 28, 2022 

Frankie:

Today might be the worst day ever. My mom told me and my brother Toby that we are going to be “shedding our pandemic weight” and all we heard is….DIET.

She says it’s not going to be that bad. We are going to get more walks, adventures, and basement games where I get to play hide and seek with smelly things, which I love.

And if I love it, Toby will love it too, because you know…I’m the Alpha.

I think I’m at my fighting weight at 45lb, but Mom thinks I’ll be more nimble and able to outrun Toby at under 40, with a goal of 38lbs.

You know what that sounds like to me….NO TREATS! I’ve been promised treats aren’t going away, they’re just shifting.

Whatever that means. . . something about more dehydrated protein and fewer cookies. But, I love cookies…

The upside in all of this is that I just got back from a free run in my fenced in pickle ball court and it was a blast!! Toby and I were chasing the ball, and each other of course. Mom was super satisfied with how much we ran.

So maybe this “shedding our pandemic weight” thing won’t be so bad afterall. I’m super glad you’ll be following along!!!

Toby:

I’m excited about shedding our pandemic weight because it just means we get even more special attention from Mom. More conversations, more hugs when she weighs us, more together-time, are my favorite times.

Since I’m just 5lbs from my goal weight, Mom thinks I’ll be back to cookie treats in moderation whatever that means, wayyyyy before Frankie.

And anytime I can get special attention, it’s a win!

Mom said we’re going to be checking in, so I’ll look forward to seeing you again soon and sharing more during this adventure.